Locked Away (Living With Lies Book 2) by Riann C. Miller Page B

with you seeing him. I’ll make sure I tell him that.”
    I shrug. “I don’t think it matters anymore. He seemed pretty pissed off at me last night when I got home,” I state.
    “The only thing that pissed Kiran off last night was the fact that you went out with another man. Believe me, if you’re still open to the idea, then I know he is. I’ve never seen him...hung up on a female before.”
    I nod my head. I’m not sure I agree with her. “Are we good?” I ask as she starts messing with her lunch.
    “Yeah,” she softly says which causes my heart to settle. It seems no matter how hard I try, Kate makes it impossible to hate her.
    ****
    That night, Gavin came home from work without Kiran. He announced that Kiran stayed behind to work on a project, but I saw a look pass between Gavin and Kate that told me it was something else. My mind immediately went to a woman. He claims he has a date this weekend...maybe he sped up his plans.
    After dinner, I told Kate I was tired and went to my room. Instead of going to sleep, I looked up Damian’s name online again only to find an article claiming a bench warrant by the U.S. government has been issued against him in the role he and five others played in the death of a DEA officer.
    I’ve always known if I wanted to live a carefree life that it wouldn’t include Damian, but now faced with the reality of that, I’m sad, and more importantly, I’m scared. As much as I love Manuel, I refuse to return to Poza Rica without Damian. The people there—hell, even Damian’s men would love nothing more than the chance to bring down the Cartel Princess, and I fear that’s exactly what would happen without my father’s protection.
    The evening passes and before I know it, it’s already close to midnight. Instead of sleeping, I put on my bathing suit and make my way down to the pool. This time, I find Kiran in his usual chair before I get in the pool.
    “Hey,” I say, causing Kiran’s eyes to snap to mine. Instead of answering me, he nods his head. When it’s clear he’s not going to say anything, I dive in and let myself unwind. I repeatedly swim from one end to the other and the whole time I can feel Kiran’s eyes burning into my skin.
    By the time I finish, I’m exhausted. Even pulling myself out of the pool feels like a chore. I walk past Kiran and grab my towel. Once I’m completely dried and ready to go inside, I pause.
    “I’m sorry. You were right. How I spoke to Kate last night was out of line. I want you to know it won’t happen again,” I add before opening the door and heading back to my room. I don’t know what it is about Kiran Clark that causes me to act like a fool, but I know if I’m going to survive the next few weeks, I need to get thoughts of him out of my head.
    ****
    If I had any idea that working ahead in my classes would give me this much downtime, I wouldn’t have killed myself that first night. However, as of now, I’m still waiting for additional assignments to be posted before I can do anything more. I used the Kindle app on my phone to download tons of books, but after reading several, I’m itching to get out of the house. I know Kate or Gavin would give me a lift if I asked them to, but I hate inconveniencing them any more than I already have. Consequently, today, after everyone left, I called a cab and went into town.
    I went from coffee shops to bookstores to the public library. I met a few men who happily gave me their phone number, but the best part of my day happened when I made a friend—a female friend. At least, Jena feels like she could make for a good friend.
    Jena works at the bookstore I spent hours roaming around in, and after a long conversation, she offered me a part-time job—which I gladly accepted.
    My father would spit nails if he knew I was working a common job for a low wage, but I’m sick of sitting around Kate’s house all day. And if I’m being honest, I’m hoping if I put down some roots here in Denver